Applying for a real estate mortgage is a very simple process if you have a real estate agent to help you in each of the steps to be taken. The first step to obtain a favorable financing is to evaluate our financial situation and verify that we meet all the requirements to be granted this credit. According to the official recommendations made by the Spanish banks, the maximum monthly amount that a family should dedicate to the payment of its financial debts, including the mortgage, is 35% of the total income of the family nucleus. Steps to obtain the best financing in your real estate mortgage Comparison: before the final decision, it is convenient to evaluate the market situation in real time. Knowing that the mortgage we are choosing is the best of all is a conclusion we will reach after requesting information from as many banks as possible and comparing them. The factors to take into account in the comparison are: the term to pay off the debt, the interest rate and the amount of the installment. Analysis of the general conditions of the mortgages of the chosen entity: before signing, it is advisable to ask the bank for the FIPRE (Precontractual Information Sheet). In this document, banks detail the basic terms for granting mortgages. As it is a very general document, it may be that in our particular case specific conditions adapted to our reality are applied. However, this document will allow you to know the policies of the entity you have chosen, since if you do not agree with something, there will always be time to look for a new bank. Decide whether to apply for the mortgage before or after choosing the house: the banks offer us the possibility of applying for the mortgage either before or after making the decision about which house we will use the loan for. This is a very important decision and the advantages and disadvantages of each option should be evaluated for our comfort throughout the next two decades of our lives. Advantages and disadvantages of applying for the mortgage before and after choosing the house. Before: we will save time because we will know in advance if the bank approved our mortgage and we will be able to focus on looking for properties whose price is within the credit limit that the bank will grant us. On the other hand, we will not have to worry about the expiration of the earnest money contract. However, we will be exposed to the bank changing its conditions on the fly. After: the main advantage is that we will have the possibility of reserving the house in advance, thus eliminating the risk of someone else buying it once we have the credit in our hands. However, there is always the possibility that the bank will not approve the requested loan, which will have led us to lose time and the reservation money if getting a mortgage approved takes too long. The role of the real estate agent A real estate agent will allow you to have a more realistic approach about the loan to apply for according to your financial situation. At the same time, it will help you choose the interest rate to apply for according to the reality of your income, since there is no one interest rate that is totally better than another, but each of them benefits different kinds of financial situations. Finally, the real estate agency will be in charge of presenting all the required documentation and following up with the bank until the mortgage is in your hands.